Progress on road around Nelson Road rock slide

SCOTTS VALLEY - A temporary gravel road around the Nelson Road rock slide is expected to be finished by the end of the week, county officials said.

The new road will allow residents from 33 homes on Nelson Road, Sky Meadow Lane and Ruins Creek Road to drive in and out of the mountain neighborhood that has been blocked by tons of rocks since March 21.

A larger issue is what to do with tons of sandstone rocks now piled in the road, said John Presleigh, the county director of public works. Geologists need more than a week of dry weather to assess the rock slide and plan the road clearing, he said.

"We're still waiting for it to dry," Presleigh said.

Officials are still unsure what to do with the rocks.

Presleigh said if state officials declare that damage from large storms on March 24 and 25 are worthy of emergency relief, state money could accelerate the cleanup.

Wednesday, county contractors used a bulldozer and other heavy equipment to dump gravel on a muddy road carved around the slide.

Several neighbors used a footpath around the road construction to get to their cars on the other side of the slide. They said they have been hauling groceries and leading their children on the planks of the muddy footpath for days.

Two plastic chairs were set up on either side of the "mud path," as neighbors call it, so walkers could change in and out of their mud boots.

She said her only complaint was that gravel had not been put on the footpath as well. The slide experience had brought many of the neighbors together, she said.

"I've met neighbors I never knew I had," Wyman said.

Neighbors met with officials at Scotts Valley Fire Station 1 this week, and they planned to meet again there Tuesday.

Patty Davis, who has lived on Sky Meadow Lane for 28 years, said she wanted to thank PG&E for restoring power to the four homes on her road. They were powerless for days after the slide, until late last week when a crew installed a new power pole on the hillside.

Other neighbors also echoed their thanks to the Sheriff's Office, county public works, Scotts Valley firefighters, Verizon and AT&T.

Peggy Weeden, a 72-year-old widow who lives near the slide, said she had not endured as much as her other neighbors because her driveway is not blocked. However, she said her power was out and her generator ran out of gasoline on a recent cold night. She said deputies delivered gas, and she thanked them.

"Everybody is usually ripping the agencies, but they've done really well," Weeden said.